Pioneer Puma Post

• Positive & Proactive Communication
• Upcoming Events
• Attendance Notes
• Community Clean-Up Day Update (no formal event at Pioneer)
• School Bus Safety
• On-Site After-School Opportunities
• Health Office Consent Reminder

Pioneer Families ...

We have had a great start to another exciting school year at Pioneer. To keep that momentum going, I want to stress how important it is that we join hands to support our students' growth. I'd like to highlight the pivotal role that effective communication plays in fostering a successful educational experience.

Open channels of communication are vital in ensuring that we work together seamlessly for the benefit of our students. Please never hesitate to communicate with the school and/or your child's teacher, keeping us updated on your child's successes and struggles (academic, behavior, social, and major events that occur in their lives). This allows us to best meet the needs of our students.

Our teachers dedicate themselves to your children's education with unwavering commitment, investing tremendous time, effort, and care each and every day. I strongly believe that this dedication merits the utmost respect and appreciation. When communicating with your child's teacher, it's essential to approach conversations constructively with empathy, patience, and an open mind. Remember that our teachers are partners in your child's educational journey and we are on the same team.

Positive and respectful communication not only strengthens the parent-teacher relationship but also models valuable life skills for our students. By demonstrating effective communication, we teach our children the importance of collaboration, understanding, and the power of words.

Your involvement, feedback, and respect for our educators contribute to a thriving school community that uplifts each and every student. Thank you for your ongoing support, and let's make this school year a memorable and enriching one for our students.

Regards,

David Jakious

Principal, Pioneer School of the Arts

August 23

• Chess Club Starts
• Free drop-in program (8:30-9:15)
• No prior experience needed (learn the basics and play with peers)

August 24

• Instrument Night with Dunkley Music (cafeteria)
• For band and orchestra students to check out and rent instruments for the year

August 31

• Back-to-School Night (6:00 - 7:30) - Grades 1-5
• Learn more about your child's classroom, the year's curriculum, etc

September 4

• No School - Labor Day

September 8

• School Picture Day!

• Please make sure you call the office or include cornett.kathleen@westada.org on an email to notify us of any expected absences or tardies. Families sometimes give the teacher a heads-up but forget to tell the office.
• Remember ... you need to have your ID with you when signing a student out. We will not release without ID that matches PowerSchool contact or emergency contact. You also need an ID to get a badge to enter the building to visit/volunteer.
• If you know of extended absences, make sure to coordinate with the office in advance of the absence.

You might be aware that West Ada has been promoting "Community Clean-Up Day" for this Saturday.

Thanks to the hard work of our custodians and our grounds crew, we feel that Pioneer is generally looking really good. Since there is not a mountain of work to be done and knowing how precious your family time is, Pioneer will not be holding a formal event this weekend.

That said, we've had a couple of questions about the event and we'd welcome any support from families who might want to drop in anytime this weekend. Our primary needs would be ...

• Pulling weeds from the parking lot/north drop-off loop island areas and the south playground bark
• Safely weed-eating the persistent weeds and grasses that have popped up in the cracks of the cement and blacktop (primarily in the playground and wallball areas)

So ... while there is not enough work to ask a lot of families to attend a formal clean-up event, a little bit of TLC could certainly add to the vibrance of our grounds. If your family chooses to be of service to our school by helping, we thank you and encourage you to send a couple pictures to brown.madison@westada.org so we can post them to our Facebook/Instagram pages to recognize your contribution.

We want all of our students and parents to know how to be safe around our buses (whether they ride the bus it not). Please review the School Bus Safety information shared by our State Department of Education and include your child in these safety tips.

Note: This program is not run by West Ada but will take place at Pioneer.

Tuesdays, 4-5pm (9/5 - 10/24)

Back to school and back to drawing with Young Rembrandts! Our first session of the year selects drawings that intro-duce students to a fascinating world of color, pattern, and design. We say goodbye to our favorite summer memory with a detailed still life drawing of a beach. We explore color usage and composition with our silly dinosaur and fire truck drawings. You will be MOOOOOved with our stylized patterned cow drawing that challenges our technique and our color scheme. Students will learn about portrait drawing with Rembrandt himself and they’ll discover cultural themes as they draw and color Kawaii style art. Classes fill up fast so sign up today!

Click below for more information, contact information, and how to sign-up ...

Note: This program is not run by West Ada but will take place at Pioneer.

Tuesdays, 4-5pm (all year on a monthly basis)

Activities include Improvisations, Speaking Skills, Creative Movement, and Much More!

• Builds Creative Thinking and Social Skills
• Develops Acting and Public Speaking Skills
• Grows Confidence Awesome FUN!

Click below for more information, contact information, and how to sign-up ...

(Reminder from a separate text/email ... we still have about half of our families who have not completed this)

Our Health Office provides essential services to our students when they need them. However, if you want your child to be able to receive support/treatment in the health office, you MUST have consent recorded in PowerSchool forms. As of right now, only about half of our students have these consents completed in PowerSchool because they were added after many families last completed the forms.

Please complete this IMPORTANT TASK as soon as possible ...

• Login to PowerSchool
• Click the button next to Update Student Information (top left)
• Click SchoolForms
• Select Medical - Complete each page
• One of the pages will be "Consents"
• Carefully review each consent and select an option from the dropdown (even the ibuprofen consent despite it not applying to elementary students)
• IMPORTANT: Leaving a consent blank equates to a NO and would result in a student being denied access to these important services.

If you select "NO" for any of the consents*, we encourage you to reach out to the nurse for a clarifying discussion.

*Except for the medication consents as that option is pretty straightforward. Note that Tylenol can only be given if the consent is completed in PowerSchool no matter what a parent says over the phone. Also, be aware that the nurse will no longer be able to accept verbal permission for things like Tums or Benadryl. Parents must fill out medication consent forms and provide their own medication for anything other than Tylenol.

Website: westada.org/pioneer
Location: 13255 West McMillan Road, Boise, ID, USA
Phone: (208)855-4100
Facebook: facebook.com/pioneerpumas